


Behind the Mask

by KogamiShizu



Category: Original Work
Genre: Actor - Freeform, Complete, Mask, Performer, fake - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-22
Updated: 2015-07-22
Packaged: 2018-04-10 14:10:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 520
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4394864
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KogamiShizu/pseuds/KogamiShizu
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Something is wrong with one person. Something that weighs heavily on the girl's shoulders, bothering him. Something it seems she will not dare share with anyone. Not even her friends, her fellow comrades, her teachers, her family.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Behind the Mask

Chris Hernandez knows.  
  
He is a great observer. His eyes never miss a thing, as some would say. The piercing gaze of an eagle.  
  
Something is wrong with one person. Something that weighs heavily on the girl's shoulders, bothering him. Something it seems she will not dare share with anyone. Not even her friends, her fellow comrades, her teachers, her family.  
  
Yet, even if this is a recent discovery, Chris knows it has been going on for a while.  
  
The signs have been there all along.  
  
How her shoulders would hunch a little when she thought no one paid attention. How her laugh would sound a little off; not notably so, but still too high pitched. How she – for a mere second – would stare blankly out in space when she lost herself in thought.  
  
All the smiles, the happiness, the glee, the laugh.  
  
Chris knows it's all an act.  
  
As the other members, Krystal's body has scars. All the battles they have experienced have left their marks. But there is one scar that stands out. On her arm, long and jagged. Deep.  
  
"Ah, this? That's just from my brother," she would say if anyone asked. And they wouldn't bring it up again. But Chris knows.  
  
Krystal is smart. She is aware of the correct way to kill oneself.  
  
There is a reason behind her reluctance to wearing short-sleeved shirts. The skipping of meals. The excuses for missing practice. She hides away. And not a soul notices.  
  
If Chris remembers correctly – of course he does – the girl was about to jump off a building once too. Because of a bad grade? An uncertain possiblity? No. That can't be it. Not the only reason. She may act lighthearted, but Krystal is not one to take the matter of life and death lightly.  
  
But no matter how many times Chris thinks about it, no matter how many times he silently wonders or how many times he analyzes the case, he can't find the reason.  
  
What is it that follows the girl like a plague, that tires her and makes her hate herself? Chris does not know, and it irks him until no end.  
  
And no one sees, but him. Because Krystal is convincing. Because she's smiling. Because she is laughing. Because she is happy. It's all wrong. No one sees that the words are fiction. That the smiles are fake. That the laughs are false. That the happiness is a lie. It's so, so wrong, but only he knows. Him and Krystal herself.  
  
Because, sometimes, it is better to believe the lie, than having to deal with the harsh reality. So Chris lets Krystal continue deceiving. Lets her continue weaving her web of lies. Lets her build the impenetrable walls around herself, so she'll never feel vulnerable.  
  
Because, for once in his life, Chris is helpless. He can only sit back and watch as the girl secretly ruins herself. So he waits. For someone to ask. For someone to pay attention. For someone to care. Because he can't fill that role.  
  
Who would have known? Turns out Krystal Xiong is a great performer.


End file.
